Sparking apparatus.



A. P, ROCKWELL.

SPARKING' APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 12, 1906.

Patented June 21, 1910.

WYTNES ES:

' JNVENTOR. .yf. ERooimwl. I i I ATTORNEY.

nnrrnn so? ALBERT I. EOSHWELL, tll BBISTQL, CONNEGT lCUT, ASSIGNOB, TO THE NEW DEPAETlJ EE MANUFACTURING CQMPANY, GE BRISTOL, CONNECTIGUT, A CORIORATIGN 03691!- NECTICUTA sessions srranarus.

Application filed March 12, 1906. Serialfio. 305,665.

To all whom it concern:

Be it known that l, Amen? Rocuwnnn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bristol, county of Hartford, State of Connecticut, have invented a certain new and useful Sparking Apparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, and. exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains' to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

This invention relates to sparking apparatus, adapted particularly for use in connection with explosion notors and the like.

In order to properly illustrate my invention I have shown it including a plurality of sparking plugs, such, for example, as are used in connection with multiple cylinder engines, and inasmuch as the invention is applicable to any type of cylinder, 1 have deemed it unnecessary to illustrate any specific form oi fuel supply, exhaust mechanism or air inlet, all of which are old and well known.

An object of my invention is to provide means whereby the sparking plug point will free from corrosion, so as not to interfere with the proper electrical action when the piston is in its proper position for eltecting the spark.

' Another object of the invention is to pro vide means whereby a constantly changingsurface on the piston may he presented to the spark plug point, so thata difierent part of the piston will be acted upon each time by the spark.

Another object of the invention is to provide a removable sparking surface carried by the piston, so that in the event thht the wall of the piston becomes pitted a new surface may he provided without changing the entire piston.

It is also the object of my invention to arrange the sparking plugs in multi le, from a single conductor having a singe source of generation, in circuit with which is means for advancing or retarding the spark at will.

Other objects and advantages as well as the novel details of construction of this invention will be specifically set forth hereinafter, it being understood that chan es in form, proportion and minor details 0 construction may he resorted to without depart pocket or recess 7 from the spirit of this invention or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof. in the drawings: Figure 1 is a view partly in longitudinal section and partly in elevation of a motor provided with apparatus constructed in accordance with my inven tion; and'l ig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 22 of Fig. 1. v I

In the drawings used to illustrate my invention. I have shown a motor as comprising a plurality of cylinders. 5. These'cyl inders are provided with sparking. plugs 6, one for each cylinder. The sparking are constructed in the usual manner, in provided with spark points 7, inelongated recesses 8, which recesses are of sutlicient size to permit the gas to be exploded in the 8, when the spark is made, in such a manner that the gas in each recess or pocket 8 will be permitted to escape therefrom when it is ignited, and in doing this theliahility of corrosion 0r accumulation of any deposit on the sparking point will tie avoided. i i

T he pistons 9 are provided with removable'sparking surfaces illustrated as comprisin rings 10, which arecarried by one end lo each piston. nectcd to the crank-shaft 11 by a piston-rod 12. The connection ing "'12 and the piston is shown asbelng of the ball and socket type, as shown at 13, see last cylinder from eftto right, Fig. 1. By connecting the piston and itsrod in this Patented June at, 19710.

Each piston is conbetween the piston-rod manner movement of the piston about its axis is permitted, so that a clean as arking surface will be resented to the :(p duringeach exp osion, thereby r liability of the sparking ring becoming pitted, but if the ring does become pitted it may be readily removed and a new one put in its place. The electrode 7 is in the side of the cylinder and the piston 'reciprocates into and out of electrical proximity a, into and out of such position with re, spect to the electrode that the spark can occur. Manifestly, the reci rocation of the piston causes kept bright. Thus, by using the side of the reciprocatin piston as one of the electrodes, 1 am enable at all times to present a bright, clean electrode for cooperation. with the rangement whereby the k plug using the to said electrode,

the side of t 'e piston to be I y tute one of the electrodes in each cylinder, the pistons being. provided to co-act with the several sparking plugs, which sparking plugs are ayran ed m multiple and fed from a common-con uctor, so that the plugs are at all times ready to cooperate with a piston which is in proper position with relation thereto to effect a spark. The arrangement of the piston shown is such that a spark will be eflected at about each quarter turn ofthe shaft, so that an'im ulse will be every 90 degrees I may utilize any generating medium for supplying the current, such, for example, as a magneto or a battery B. The generator given to the'shaft through a.-p1ston at about B may be in closed circuit with a conductor P of the primary of an inductorium I, the

secondar vS. of which is shown as being connecte to the crank case Get. 9, the other 'leadf being in circuit with the s ark plugs whic are connected in multip e. Inter-- I posed between the terminals of the lead 9,

' mm the inductorium to the circuit controller.

14', and having a orin other words in circuit therewith, is a circuit controller A carried on the bracket lurality of secondary contacts 15 electricaly connected inseries with that part'of the lead 9 inter osed betweenthe circuit controller and t e spark plugs. The portion of the lead g leading is connected to a rotatable disk 16, carried by a hollow'shaft 17 journaled in the box or housing 18 of the circuit controller. The disk 16 carries a metallic segment 15 adapted to successively contact with :the secondary contacts 15 to cause a spark at suitable intervals. The shaft 17 may be driven from the shaft 11 through the medium of the ears 19 and 20, the latter being carried by t e hollow shaft 17 which is provided with a pin;21 projecting through a slot 22. in the slide 23 which 15 connected to the v lever 24. Therefore, by operating the slide plugs in multiple and in circuit at all times,

it will be necessary only to permit a piston to come in proper relative position with relation to its spark plug in order to effect a spark, and as any number of spark plu may be arranged in multiple from a sing e line or conductor, it'is obvious that the usual complicated wiring may be avoided.

What I claim is '1. In a sparking apparatus, an electrode, a piston movable toward and away from the same, said piston being rotatably mounted and shifting about its center of rotation as it moves toward and away from saidelectrode, and a sparking 'rin removably mounted upon said piston an constituting the cooperating electrode; substantially as described.

2. A sparking circuit comprising a plurality of stationary electrodes, a single electrical connection in communication with all of said electrodes, a plurality of rotatably mounted reci rocating, istons constituting cooperating e ectrodes Eu the first named electrodes, and a removable sparking ring carried byeach piston,

In testimony whereof, I hereunto afiix my signature, inthe presence of two witnesses.

ALBERT F. ROCKWELL.

Witnesses:

B. F. FUNK, 

